President and General Manager Message

Batteries and Meters; Wrightsville and Coventry: Co-op Infrastructure Updates

Co-op Plans Ahead for Electronic Voting In Time for 2027 Board Election

Plans for Batteries to Address Peak Costs

Louis: A lot of our strategic focus at Washington Electric now is to address not just how much power members need, but the time the power is used, and the time it’s produced. Net metered solar power, which is such a large factor in Washington Electric territory, has basically masked increases in load for a long time. For several years we didn’t see overall load growth, because power generated through net metered solar filled members’ rising electricity needs.

But now, peak times are no longer typically in the afternoon, when solar is producing. Peaks have moved later in the evening, sometimes early in the morning. Most utilities have their highest peaks during summer; WEC has always been a winter peaking utility. However, more utilities in the region are seeing double peaks in the winter as well, because solar has removed that peak in the summer.

The ability for solar to mask or reduce utility peaks has lessened, because peaks have shifted to when solar is not producing as much. Like other utilities, we’re focusing a lot on different ways to manage how much power our members use during peaks, and also on producing power to use during peaks instead of purchasing power. 

One way to do that is by using batteries. Utility-scale batteries are usually located at a substation. Home batteries can be used instead of a generator during an outage, and if members with home batteries agree to it, WEC can use that stored power during peaks as well.

Other tactics include managing EV charging, which JJ [Vandette, Director of Special Projects and Innovation] has revamped to encourage EV drivers to charge outside of peak times. This saves the full membership money, and members have the incentive of a monthly bill credit for participating.

That’s the short version of what we’re working on. WEC is learning from other utilities that are generously sharing what they’ve learned, especially Vermont Electric Co-op, to our members’ benefit.

Steve: A lot of this is new ground for WEC. There’s a lot of discussion in the utility world around reducing usage during peaks. In order to gain the benefits of discharging batteries and managing demand, we have to be able to hit the peak hour in any given month with a fair degree of reliability, at the same time many other utilities in the state and region will be trying the same thing. This has the potential to shift peak from one time of day to another depending on who’s using their batteries or not. While there are definite benefits worth pursuing for WEC members to reduce WEC’s total electric load at peak times, it’s going to be an evolving landscape.

We’ve been talking so far talking about one specific use of batteries, which is to hit the peak. Batteries have all sorts of other potential benefits as well. The goal of our first foray is to achieve cost savings by peak shaving, but as batteries continue to get cheaper and different battery chemistries become commercially available, the economical uses for this technology abound, particularly in reducing the traditional need of fossil fuel generators for regional capacity and reserve.

Louis: One interesting possibility is using battery storage to offset needed substation or other infrastructure updates, because they can absorb generation. So if you’re concerned about solar generation overloading your system at certain times, batteries could help. This is what’s happening at our Jackson Corners substation. A key part of rebuilding Jackson Corners and Mt. Knox substations includes the infrastructure itself; the wooden posts are simply old. But batteries could support future upgrades at other substations.

Steve: The possibility of pairing local batteries with local solar at any scale could resolve challenges posed by net metered rooftop solar. I’ve read that California installers now pair battery systems with most new solar net metering, allowing the rooftop solar owner to store and use most of the power they generate in their own home. That addresses the more complex issue of having to export the power they generate but don’t use onto the grid, which creates technical problems like the one occurring at Jackson Corners, and also leads to inequitable  cost-shifting to other member-ratepayers.

In general, I feel that progress in the emerging uses of batteries will depend more on thoughtful regulation than on hardware. Batteries may continue to revolutionize the grid, and in particular facilitate the dependable and economic use of clean intermittent resources like wind and solar that will benefit everybody. I am happy WEC has set its foot on this path.

Advanced Meter Update

Steve: We have a vendor selected to install new meters, and we’re benefiting from a total of $4.75 million in grants. $2.5 million comes from the federal Department of Energy.

Louis: The reason rollout has not yet started is the Trump administration’s Build America Buy America requirement. If you use Department of Energy grant money, you have to use American-made devices. Nobody makes smart meters in America, or not entirely in America. So we need to get a waiver to that requirement to move forward with that project. We’re in the same boat with many other co-ops throughout the country doing similar work with grant money, and we hope to resolve it with a waiver. We don’t yet have a timeline for when that will happen.

Steve: Louis, can you elaborate? Are you talking about simple components within a meter, or the entire meter?

Louis: The rules are complicated. Basically, there’s a share of the components that have to be made in the US, and no major US manufacturer makes a meter that meets the requirement. As far as the waiver goes, we’ve seen similar waivers approved, so that gives us hope. You can’t sign the vendor contract until the waiver’s approved.

But here’s the important part. The pause is due to a great reason, which is that the project is paid for by grant money and not members’ bills. I don’t mind some red tape if we’re doing a project that costs close to $6 million, and grant money is paying for almost $5 million of it.

Wrightsville Hydro Sale Update

Louis: The Board has given its support for a sale of the Wrightsville hydro generation plant with conditions. The sale would involve us purchasing the power back from the new owner-operators under a long-term power contract. Basically, Washington Electric members would still be getting power produced from Wrightsville, while somebody else owns and operates the plant.

Steve: When the Board previously pursued selling the plant, some members raised the concern that, regardless of its current challenges, we were losing a source of renewable power. Wrightsville power is a very small fraction of WEC’s total portfolio and has proven to be among the most expensive, but it is a valid point. If WEC is able to continue taking the power from Wrightsville, I expect it may alleviate any misgivings about WEC’s future needs. If the new operational plan works as intended, the plant would be operated by more experienced hydro operators who could operate the plant more efficiently.

Louis: This has twofold benefits for us: first, it allows our staff to focus on other aspects of what Washington Electric does outside operation of the hydro plant, and second, it would be operated by somebody with a long history of operating hydroelectric dams and maximizing the power produced by them. 

Wrightsville produces 3% of our power needs in a good year. Recently, it’s been much less than that due to weather, equipment breakdowns, and changes in regulations. We’d like to get as much renewable power from that plant as we can for members, and someone else operating the plant is the best option.

Steve: Regarding the sale, the Board expects to review the final purchase and sale agreement to ensure our members’ former asset could continue to be used for their needs going forward. The priority of this transaction is achieving the best net benefits for WEC members, not who owns the plant.

Louis: The Washington Electric employees who operate the plant have done a great job with the resources and time they have, but they each have several other jobs that are a priority. For instance, if there’s a major outage, folks are focused on restoring power and not getting the dam back online right away, because restoring members’ power is a priority for us. If the plant was somebody’s primary job it would be run more efficiently and effectively. We also operate the Coventry landfill gas-to-electricity plant, which is not 3% of our load, but closer to 70% of our load. That’s run by contractors, but it’s a generating facility we need to spend more time on.

Coventry Plant Equipment Update

Louis: At Coventry, we’re replacing a chiller that cools and de-waters landfill gas as it comes into the plant. The one there is the original, and like any piece of equipment, it’s been worn out from years of use. We have a replacement ready, but we’re going to delay installation until at least September to lessen the chance that the plant is closed when power prices are at their summer peak.

Steve: Coventry’s value to WEC’s members is its reliability as well as the amount of power produced at the plant. Putting in a new chiller proactively, instead of waiting for the old one to break for good, is paramount to the plant operating continuously and efficiently.

Louis: This bears repeating, a larger and larger share of members’ electric bills is peak costs: transmission costs and capacity charges that vary based on when power is used. Peak costs are different from the cost of making or buying electricity, or even our distribution system, because it’s about timing. Coventry is immensely valuable to members because it’s behind the meter. [What does “behind the meter” mean? See more below.] It has peak benefits as well as raw transmission and REC [renewable energy credits] benefits. Coventry shut down during peak can cost WEC tens of thousands; on the other hand, Coventry operating during peak benefits members by tens of thousands. Either way, keeping fingers crossed, the current chiller continues to work.

To give credit: Brian Callnan [Director of Power Supply and Regulatory Affairs], when he worked at VPPSA [Vermont Public Power Supply Authority], and Patty [Richards, former WEC General Manager] set us on the path to put Coventry behind the meter, and it’s been a tremendous benefit to members.

Electronic Voting

Louis: The Board directed Washington Electric to make it so that by the 2027 Board election, members can vote electronically as well as by mail and in person at Annual Meeting. The goal is to make it as easy as possible for members to vote.

Steve: In this move to electronic voting, the Board envisions this procedure may evolve based on how members react to the change. For now, we’re looking at a hybrid system that will allow for a transition period over the next few years to let people become familiar with electronic voting. This means retaining a background system for voting by mail and at in-person at the Annual Meeting. We typically have around 30 to 50 votes cast at the Annual Meeting, and as the last meeting showed, a lot of our Board positions are won by one, two, or three votes. I hope to get member feedback as we go along to see how the process works out for members who are more paper-oriented as well as the growing number who conduct business and communication through electronic means. After some discussion over the last couple of years, the Board as a whole thought it was time to start the process.

What does “behind the meter” mean?

WEC’s member-owned Coventry landfill-gas-to-electricity plant is “behind the meter,” which means it is used privately and avoids the open market. Coventry generates around 70% of the power WEC members use. This significantly reduces peak costs, because even though peak costs are rising, WEC must only buy the peak power it needs that is not covered by Coventry and other behind the meter assets. It’s a little like if you own and operate a greenhouse, your food budget is likely to be smaller than your food needs, because you can grow so much of your own food.